Police believe missing German backpacker Carolina Wilga became lost in the remote wilderness after her van broke down in outback Western Australia and have ruled out foul play.
The 26-year-old was last seen at about midday on June 29 at a general store in Beacon, a small town about 300km northeast of Perth.
She had been living and working in Australia for about two years and had recently set off to explore regional WA.
However, just two days into her trip, friends and family lost contact and reported her missing.
At about 1.10pm on Thursday, police found her van abandoned in the Karroun Hill area – about 50km northeast of Beacon and 35km from any marked tracks.
WA Police Acting Inspector Jessica Securo said Ms Wilga is believed to have become lost and walked away from her vehicle after it broke down.
‘Our information to date is she’s likely to become lost in that area, and has potentially walked away from her vehicle,’ Acting Inspector Securo told ABC Radio Perth on Friday.
‘The terrain – it’s outback country and there’s large rocky outcrops, so although there’s a number of tracks, you can see how it would be easy to become lost or disorientated in that area if you didn’t know it well.
A search is underway for Carolina Wilga after she disappeared in Western Australia
Police are searching Western Australia’s vast Wheatbelt region for the young traveller
‘We’ve got a forensic contingent out there this morning, and they’ll be in a position to make a better assessment of the vehicle and its capabilities for that area.
‘The car is obviously self-sufficient … she has got solar panels, she has got water in the vehicle. It’s just the vehicle itself is mechanically unable to be used.’
Police are investigating whether Ms Wilga took anything with her from the van that might offer clues to her whereabouts.
‘It’s hard to say how much she has taken, we do know that she was planning to travel throughout regional WA and do some exploring through there,’ Acting Inspector Securo said.
‘Part of my team at Major Crime division will go through the vehicle and meticulously cover what was in the vehicle, what we believe is outstanding. And that may help to direct our search in a certain area.’
Detective Senior Sergeant Katharine Venn said on Thursday that the search for Ms Wilga was ‘vast’, and that authorities in all states and territories had been notified.
Planes and helicopters have been scouring the Wheatbelt region- an area Sergeant Venn labelled as having ‘inhospitable, rocky terrain’.
Police have also been following up leads across regional Western Australia and towns including Esperance, Margaret River and Albany.
At about 1.10pm on Thursday her van was found abandoned in Karroun Hill, an area about 50km northeast of where she was last seen
Bush in the area where Carolina went missing is very dense
‘She could be off grid, not have access to her phone, and she certainly had capacity in the vehicle she was travelling in to be self-sufficient for quite some time,’ Sergeant Venn said.
Sergeant Venn added police were ‘very concerned’ for her welfare and that her family overseas were distraught.
‘The family are understandably distraught, very worried, as any of us would be with a young family member on the other side of the world missing in such unusual circumstances,’ Sergeant Venn said.
Ms Wilga’s mother, from Castrop-Rauxel near Dortmund, appealed to the public for help.
‘I’m her mother and need her help, as I can’t do much from Germany. Carolina is still sorely missed. If anyone has any information, please contact the police … please keep your eyes open,’ she wrote.
Ms Wilga is described as having a slim build, long, frizzy-curly, dark blonde hair, brown eyes and several tattoos.
She has several tattoos, including one which depicts symbols on her left arm.
Anyone with any information, dashcam, CCTV or mobile phone footage from the Beacon area and surrounding northeast Wheatbelt area is being urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers.
Timeline of the disappearance
June 28 – Ms Wilga left Fremantle
Ms Wilga’s friend saw her leave the Sundance Backpackers hostel in Freemantle on June 28.
Her friend Denise Kullick told German media Ms Wilga had planned to travel with a friend to a seaside location to become a yoga teacher – but ended up setting off alone.
Another friend, in Australia, was also in contact with Ms Wilga twice on the same day, the first was a text message at 7am.
In the message, Ms Wilga explained she would not be able to drop off a book and a jerry can as she had ‘some stuff she needed to handle’.
CCTV footage captured Ms Wilga driving into a petrol station at 4.28pm on Stirling Terrace in Toodyay – about 90km northeast of Perth.
Ms Wilga parked, exited her van and filled it with petrol before heading inside the service station to pay.
The 26-year-old was backpacking through Western Australia for the last two years and decided to travel to the state’s remote and regional areas (pictured, Ms Wilga in her van)
At 4.38pm, the friend received a voice message from Ms Wilga in which she was heard saying: ‘I just couldn’t wait anymore. Ugh. I felt tired’.
Shortly after, at 4.41pm, Ms Wilga left the petrol station.
Police believe Ms Wilga departed Toodyay and embarked on the 230km journey northeast, stopping at Dowerin, on the way to Beacon.
June 29 – Ms Wilga is last seen
Ms Wilga was last seen on CCTV footage taken from a general store in Beacon, about 300km northeast of Perth in the Wheatbelt region, at 12.10pm on June 29.
She was spotted wearing ripped blue baggy jeans, a cream long-sleeve jumper and a similar coloured scarf.
The young backpacker was captured peering into the store and walking around the property.
About five minutes later, she got back into her van and left. Police believe she travelled to Wialki, a further 25km east of Beacon.
CCTV footage captured Ms Wilga driving into a petrol station at 4.28pm on Stirling Terrace in Toodyay – about 90km northeast of Perth
Police believe Ms Wilga left the petrol station in Toodyay and embarked on the 230km journey northeast, stopping at Dowerin, on the way to Beacon
June 30 to July 9 – Ms Wilga makes no contact
From June 30, friends and family have not been able to contact Ms Wilga, nor has there been any sightings of the young traveller.
Police issued a missing person alert on July 7, with details of her disappearance and an appeal for information or sightings of Ms Wilga.
On July 9, Western Australia Police Commissioner Col Blanch told media police were ‘very concerned’ for Ms Wilga’s welfare.
Detectives from the homicide squad were also called in to help find the missing backpacker.
Commissioner Blanch added her disappearance was not being treated as a murder ‘at this point’.
‘They are investigating, not that it’s a homicide at this point, but we want our very best capabilities to investigate something that is very concerning to us,’ Commissioner Blanch said.
It is believed her phone has now been switched off, police said.
The police air wing has also joined the ‘very large search and rescue’ operation, with officers scouring the immense Wheatbelt region for clues to her whereabouts.
Police are ‘very concerned’ for Ms Wilga’s welfare and have notified authorities in all states and territories
Mr Wilga’s mother, from Castrop-Rauxel near Dortmund, appealed to the public for help
July 10 – Ms Wilga’s van is found
Police located Ms Wilga’s black and silver 1995 Mitsubishi Delica van in Karroun Hill at 1.10pm on Thursday.
The van was found abandoned, more than 50km north of Wialki, with police believiing the vehicle had suffered mechanical issues.
Ms Wilga was not found.
Police shared a photo of the van showing orange recovery boards under the back wheels, which are devices used to help with traction for a vehicle stuck in mud or sand.
July 11 – Police rule out foul play
Police said she may have wandered into the outback after her van broke down in Karroun Hill.
Police ruled out foul play.
‘(Her disappearance) is unexplained behaviour … and we are taking it very seriously,’ Sergeant Venn said.
‘There is no indication that there’s any third party involvement in her disappearance but our minds are open to any line of inquiry or any information that people bring forward to us.’
